Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva has been a stalwart advocate for economic justice the environment, civil liberties and universal health care. He serves a district in Arizona that is the only one in Congress representing seven separate Native American Tribes; he is a strong advocate of Native American sovereignty. He also supports humane, comprehensive immigration reform; his father was a migrant worker from Mexico who entered the U.S. through the Bracero Program. Before coming to Congress in 2003, he’d held public office for decades -- on the Tucson school board and as a member and chairman of the Pima County Board of Supervisors.

Background

Raúl Grijalva's father was a migrant worker from Mexico who entered the United States in 1945 through the Bracero Program and labored on southern Arizona ranches. Grijalva was born in Tucson, Arizona, in 1948 and graduated from Sunnyside Magnet High School in 1967. He attended the University of Arizona and earned a bachelor's degree in Sociology.

Endorsed by Our Revolution

Raúl Grijalva was endorsed by Our Revolution, an organization run by former campaign workers and supporters of former socialist presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.[1]

Berniecrat

Raúl Grijalva is a Berniecrat, is a term used for those democrats (generally) running for office who have expressed support of former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.[2]

Chavez inspiration

When Raul Grijalva was a sociology student at the University of Arizona in the late 1960s, he was inspired to become politically active by Cesar Chavez, the charismatic founder of the United Farm Workers Union who led boycotts, marches, and strikes to appeal to the conscience of the nation and improve the lives of migrant farm workers.

More than three decades later, in one of his first speeches as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Grijalva called for a national holiday to honor Chavez.[3]

"Saul Alinsky guy"

Mr. Grijalva left a clue about how he operates in 2013 when the magazine In These Times asked about his legislative strategy. “I’m a Saul Alinsky guy,” he said, referring to the community organizer and activist who died in 1972, “that’s where I learned this stuff.”

Young radical

Grijalva was a young man at the peak of El Movimiento, the Chicano civil rights movement. He had been primed for activism by his experiences in public school. “I was actually made to feel I wanted to be an Anglo,’’ he told a Tucson newspaper in 1975. “I realized what I was doing and my embarrassment turned to anger.”

Grijalva wrote for the Movimiento newspaper Coraje! (the word means both “courage” and “anger”) whose mimeographed front page featured a clenched-fist Chicano saying “My race first” and the motto “Better to die on your feet than live on your knees.” In 1969 the paper published a poem Grijalva wrote in a tone of smoldering outrage at a racist’s “clammy hand of hate.”

In 1970 Grijalva helped lead a confrontation with the Tucson City Council, demanding that a “people’s park” be carved out of a city-owned golf course in a largely Mexican-American neighborhood. After months of protests, some of which turned violent, the group prevailed and the city built a park and community center.

Grijalva became a leader in such radical groups as the Chicano Liberation Committee, which confronted the administration of the University of Arizona with demands for the establishment of a Mexican-American Studies program and the recruitment of Chicano students and faculty.

He was also active in MEChA, Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan, the student group that called the Southwest “Aztlan,” the spiritual home of the Chicano people. The acronym, the Spanish word for “fuse,” was evocative of the group’s confrontational, nationalist ideology, which took its sharpest formulation in the group’s motto: “Por la raza todo, fuera de la raza nada’’ — “For the race, everything, outside the race, nothing.”

In his history of the radical Raza Unida Party , Mexican-American scholar Armando Navarro writes that Grijalva became a party leader in Arizona. As Grijalva explained to Navarro, he and his fellow activists weren’t discouraged that the party’s limited base gave it slight chance of winning political power. “We decided to go into elective politics more in the sense of an educational tool rather than an opportunity for winning,’’ he said.

Grijalva was so militant that he alienated some members of Tucson’s Mexican-American community. After losing in his first bid for elective office, a 1972 run for a seat on the school board, he began to cultivate a less radical image. Navarro writes that Grijalva “decided to dissociate himself from RUP,’’ and adopted “a much more middle-of-the-road image and approach” that included outreach to non-Hispanics.[4]

Career/political beginnings

In 1974, Grijalva was elected to the Tucson Unified School District board and served as a school board member until 1986. Grijalva Elementary School in Tucson was named for him in 1987. From 1975 to 1986, Grijalva was the director of the El Pueblo Neighborhood Center, and in 1987 he was Assistant Dean for Hispanic Student Affairs at the University of Arizona. Grijalva was a member of the Pima County Board of Supervisors from 1989 to 2002, and served as chairman from 2000 to 2002.[6]

While on the Board of Supervisors, Grijalva managed a $1 billion budget and "ensured that the county was at the forefront of issues such as domestic partner benefits, labor rights, and transparent government. Additionally, he was a staunch advocate for balanced planning and fairness in land-use decisions". His leadership led to the creation of the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan, an "innovative approach to species and habitat protection in concert with land-use planning in the community". As a Supervisor, Raúl also "continued his advocacy for working families through passage of a bond package that contained a $10 million commitment to reinvest in older, poorer neighborhoods and to fund a county housing trust".[7]

MEChA

The Arizona Wildcat, the University of Arizona's daily newspaper, confirmed Grijalva's past membership of the radical separatist group MEChA in a story it ran Nov. 10, 1997, about a "MEChA reunion."

They had long hair, wore military fatigues and brown berets and were angry and confrontational," the paper said. "Fists in the air, Chicano student activists in the late 1960s marched on high-school and college campuses throughout the American Southwest with voices so loud it was impossible for history to forget them. This is what alumni of Movimiento Estudiantil de Chicanos de Atzl?n told their younger brethren at MEChA's 30th anniversary celebration. …

Communist Party connections

Anti NAFTA article in Communist paper

In 1993 Raul Grijalva, identified as a member of the County Board of Supervisors for Pima County Arizona, wrote an anti NAFTA article "North America needs 'fair' trade" for the November 13 edition of the Communist Party USA's People's Weekly World.[8]

Bohlke connection

In 1994 the Southern Arizona People’s Law Center has listed one of J.C. Harry’s federally subsidized apartment complexes, Fry Apartments at 909 S. Fifth Ave., as one of the two complexes “in the worst overall state of repair with dangerous structural flaws that seriously threaten the health and safety of households who reside at these properties.’

“I think there’s a real problem with J.C. Harry in the sense that ultimately they’re responsible for the fact that the apartment has run into the ground over the last 20 years,’ said Linda Bohlke, a community advocate with the Law Center, a private, nonprofit group focusing on housing and economic rights.

At the request of Pima County Supervisor Raul Grijalva, an item to extend the $25,000 contract of J.C. Harry & Associates Inc. until next April was pulled from the Council’s agenda.

Grijalva wanted the company sanctioned under the county’s “Bad Boy Ordinance,’ which essentially states that the county will not do business with companies accused of practices that harm others.

“I personally don’t think we should be doing business with them at all, and if it was solely up to me, we wouldn’t,’ Grijalva said. “I think it’s important that we not do business with a company that has rundown apartments in the minority and poor areas while the ones in other areas of town are spotless. They aren’t dealing with all properties equally.’[9]

In August residents of the federally subsidized Fry Apartments planned a `victory’ party.

Madrid and other residents, aided by the Southern Arizona People’s Law Center, had been demanding J.C. Harry clean up what they call slum conditions in the 48-unit complex. Linda Bohlke, who worked for the Law Center, was one of the main campaigners. By the victory party, she had moved to assisting the Tucson Tenants Union.

Supervisor Raul Grijalva was among those who wanted to prevent the landlord from doing further work for the county.

“I felt they had a public responsibility on their part to provide safe living conditions. If they weren’t doing it for Fry residents, why should we let them manage property for the county?’ Grijalva said.[10]

Grijalva is supported by AFSCME, the labor union for City of Tucson and Pima County employees. The principal spokeswoman for AFSCME is Linda Bohlke. Bohlke has supported Grijalva for a long time and collected nominating signatures for Grijalva in his congressional campaign. Bohlke identifies herself on her voter registration as a Communist.

The tireless efforts of hundreds of grassroots volunteers dealt a blow to the corporate establishment here and their attempt to dominate Southern Arizona politics in the Sept. 10 primary election.

Long-time progressive Raul Grijalva routed seven other candidates to win the Democratic nomination for CD-7, one of Arizona’s two new Congressional seats.

Facing weak opposition, in a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans by almost three to one, Grijalva expects to become only the second Mexican American ever elected to Congress from Arizona, and the first from Southern Arizona. As a Pima County Supervisor and Tucson School Board member Grijalva consistently fought for working peoples’ interests.

The Grijalva campaign was a textbook example of how to conduct a peoples’ campaign, beginning with its name: “A whole lot of people for Grijalva.” Hundreds of people came out seven days a week, sometimes twice on Saturday, to wear out tons of shoe leather.

Starting in early summer, when temperatures routinely exceed 100 degrees, volunteers knocked on every door, conducted voter registration, signed people up to vote by mail and most importantly, they talked to people about the issues and Grijalva’s track record. Campaigners canvassed voters, often two or three times, at their homes.

Carloads of volunteers visited rural communities. Many more volunteered thousands of hours doing office time, phone work and preparing bulk mailings.

Campaigners reflected the racial and national diversity of the district, which is more than half Mexican American, includes three Native American nations and most of Tucson’s African-American voters. The labor movement and environmental activists played an important and visible role.

The big business establishment tried to derail Grijalva by bankrolling the campaign of State Sen. Elaine Richardson, and encouraging several popular Latino candidates, so as to split the Chicano vote. Richardson was widely seen as pro-developer.

Grijalva thanked labor for its key support and for “putting the union label on me.” He promised the Southern Arizona Central Labor Council, at its Sept. 12 meeting, to become “an extension of the voice of labor in the U.S. Congress.”

Sharing a victory and campaign headquarters with Grijalva was Pima County Supervisor Richard Elias. Elias ran to complete the office vacated by Grijalva. The developers and other corporate interests wanted to gain complete control of the five-member County Board, which has two Republican members, by supporting Elias’ opponent in the Democratic primary. Elias won decisively.

Bernick wrote a follow up article "Peoples campaign is a winning strategy" for the November 16, 2002 edition of People's World

Beginning in early summer, volunteers spread out through the neighborhoods, knocking on doors, registering new voters and talking about the importance of electing candidates who will represent the interests of working people.

The campaign for one of Arizona’s two new congressional seats concentrated on the section of the district inside metropolitan Tucson consisting of the city’s predominantly Chicano South and West sides and the predominantly white neighborhoods surrounding the University of Arizona.

Grijalva had represented much of this area for 10 years as County Supervisor, and for 12 years as member of the School Board. This area is home to a majority of the voters in the new district.

The local business establishment knew they couldn’t defeat Grijalva in the general elections, so they encouraged a whole slew of candidates in the September primary. His main opposition was State Sen. Elaine Richardson.

Richardson, amply financed by business interests, raised three times as much money, and had the support of the local daily papers and Emily’s List. Emily’s List is an organization committed to funding women candidates who support women’s issues and have a good chance of winning. In response to the group’s support of Richardson, 200 women attended a press conference to announce the formation of 'Adelita’s List,' committed to electing Raul Grijalva and pointing to his 30 years of commitment to the fight for equality.

As soon as Grijalva’s campaigners began knocking on doors, they found that Grijalva’s uncompromising support for working people, for better schools, against racism and as a lifelong environmentalist were well known and respected. The AFL-CIO also played a major role in the campaign walking, staffing phone banks and helping with resources.

The Grijalva campaign energized volunteers and led to a much higher than usual voter turnout in minority neighborhoods. Arizona’s newly elected Governor, Janet Napolitano, squeaked through on the strength of these new voters. She is the first Democrat elected as Governor of Arizona since Bruce Babbitt won 20 years ago. The campaign helped many other progressive candidates get elected. Richard Elias, who ran a joint campaign with Grijalva, managed a good primary victory to succeed Grijalva as a progressive County Supervisor. Elias faced no opposition in the general election.

Adelita Grijalva, Raul’s daughter, was one of two new labor-endorsed candidates for School Board in the Tucson Unified School District. She and lawyer Bruce Burke ousted right winger Rosalie Lopez, who had been the Republican candidate against Raul Grijalva in the last County Supervisor race.

In the Sunnyside School District, another large south side district, Eva Carrillo Dong and Tony Silvain were swept into office with the support of labor and the Grijalva campaign.

Communist report on Grijalva victory

At a meeting of the National Board of the Communist Party USA in South Chicago, on the last weekend of January, 2003, an Arizona AFSCME activist stated "Using street heat tactics, all of labor worked to back one candidate Raul Grijalva in Tuscon...And we won!.[13]

Nevertheless, here in Tucson, we are gearing up for local elections in 2003 and the presidential election ahead in 2004 by using the same tactics we did in 2002 to get Raul Grijalva elected to Congress.

Pima County, which contains most of Grijalva’s district, had a 67 percent voter turnout for the November 2002 election – the second highest in the entire United States. This is mainly because for months on end, teams of volunteers, every Saturday and Sunday – and weekdays as well – walked all the precincts three to five times in the sweltering 105-plus degree heat all summer long, getting vote-by-mail requests signed, registering voters, and dropping information brochures behind screen doors and hanging on doorknobs. We tracked the reception from each household, refreshed information over and over again in computers to generate the next walking lists, had art sales and house parties to fundraise. We followed up on election day by walking all the precincts twice more that day, making phone calls to remind folks to vote, driving people to the polls, manning all the voting locations – whatever it took. Massive effort from many folks for maximum payoff: That is what it takes.

The election night party was incredible, with folks trailing back to Grijalva campaign headquarters wet and windblown after a raging storm in the late afternoon soaked the volunteers walking precincts and manning voting locations.

Like the media is doing to Dennis Kucinich right now, halfway through the campaign, local papers said that Raul Grijalva was not going to make it. He was not deemed to be even among the top five and had less than half the money of Elaine Richardson (who was heavily supported by Republican car dealers, developers, and Emily’s List). His rag-tag band of volunteers were just a pathetic joke to the pundits...

Congressman Raul Grijalva is proving to be a wonderful voice for the people of Arizona. And our movement and those important connections made during his campaign are still alive in Tucson.

Latinos for Peace

On Monday September 26 we participated in the peace movement lobby day at the capitol. We met with Rep Raul Grijalva who said he would work to help build our campaign. We spoke to the staff of Rep Luis Gutierrez and Rep. Xavier Becerra who were supportive of our efforts. We also spoke to the staff of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and the district staff of Rep Grace Napolitano the current caucus chair. The caucus staffer told us we needed more signers, more leaders and organizations on our lists in many states to have real impact. The staffer for Napolitano indicated our call for bringing the troops home now was not responsible as they (the caucus) were advised a 'bloodbath' would ensue. We assured them we would continue building our campaign and remain in contact with them. We also went to all the offices of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and presented them with our petition, contact information, and asked that the representatives to sign our petition.

Communist Raging Granny

On July 13 2005, five Raging Grannies were arrested in Tuscon for protesting the war on Iraq. Their alleged crime was entering a military recruiting office and asking to enlist in the U.S. Army, so young soldiers stationed in Iraq could safely return home.

A year later the Grannies — all old enough to be grandmothers, and some of them veteran peace activists — are still raging against war in the Middle East and injustice at home.

On the anniversary of their arrest, 14 black-shrouded Grannies, joined by 40 supporters, rallied at the federal courthouse. They then marched to Republican Sen. John McCain’s office to deliver a petition on Iraq demanding an immediate end to the U.S. occupation, the closing of all U.S. military bases and the removal all U.S. mercenaries and corporate involvement.

Why Arizona? How come voters in more liberal states have voted for similar hateful laws while conservative Arizona voted no?

If you were to believe the pundits in the corporate-owned press, our rejection of Prop. 107 was due to the western libertarian traditions, the spirit of Barry Goldwater — you know them, those right-wing Republicans who are against government interference in our personal business and our bedroom...

But a quick check of election returns would have demonstrated to these so-called pundits that Prop. 107 was defeated in working-class and liberal university precincts while passing in Goldwater Republican precincts. In suburban Tucson precincts, the vote for 107 corresponded closely with the vote for the ultra-right, anti-immigrant GOP congressional candidate Randy Graf.

So how did we do it? The answer is: educating, organizing and mobilizing.

As soon as proponents started circulating petitions to put 107 on the ballot, opponents brought out their own clipboards, signing up thousands of volunteers. Arizona Together emerged as the campaign committee, chaired by progressive state Rep. Kyrsten Sinema.

If passed, Prop. 107 proposed to outlaw same-sex marriage as well as nullify domestic partnership laws and registries which covered a majority of Arizona municipal and county workers. Since same-sex marriages are already not legal in Arizona, Arizona Together organizers realized that this was a stealth campaign to play on peoples’ prejudices and turn out Republican voters, and before anybody noticed thousands of unmarried couples would lose their health and other benefits.

Arizona Together called their bluff. It concentrated its educational campaign on the harm 107 would unleash on tens of thousands of working families.

The campaign enlisted the support of Mayors Phil Gordon of Phoenix and Bob Walkup of Tucson. These are Arizona’s two biggest cities, both of which have domestic partnership provisions for their employees. The state AFL-CIO joined the campaign with especially strong support from public employee unions. Tireless educational work eventually won the editorial support of all major Arizona newspapers.

Most important was the grassroots work. More than 18,000 volunteers spent countless hours on education and outreach. Volunteers mailed out over 1 million pieces of literature, more than 100,000 pieces were distributed door to door and tens of thousands of phone calls were made to voters. Money left over was used for three weeks of TV educational ads.

Congressman Raul Grijalva appeared on radio ads calling Prop. 107 an attack on working families. The Grijalva campaign worked closely with Arizona Together, using its literature in their extensive door-to-door canvassing. Also collaborating was the campaign of Gabrielle Gifford, who defeated Graf for an open congressional seat. I didn’t see any of those Goldwater Republicans handing out “No on 107” literature.

Arizona Together lived up to its name. It was able to defeat 107 because its educational campaign showed working-class Arizonans that this was an attack on working people. Almost every working person knows — or is him- or herself one-half of — an unmarried couple, often with children. They are our friends, co-workers, relatives, and they are us. When working people learned that 107 was an attack on all working people, they responded with a resounding “no.”

Cesar Chavez Day Marches and Rallies

Over 200 people turned out on Sept. 27 2001 for an interfaith service here honoring Cesar Chavez. Participants pointed out that the Sept. 11 tragedy highlights the need to learn from Cesar Chavez, who "struggled for justice and dignity while practicing nonviolence".

A march was held the next day, which was addressed by Pima County Supervisor Raul Grijalva. Two of the five supervisors, Grijalva and Dan Eckstrom are strong supporters of the campaign.[19]

On March 29, 2003, Raul Grijalva sponsored and addressed the Third Annual Cesar Chavez Day March and Rally for Peace.

Over 650 marchers, many carrying signs that read, “Peace is Patriotic,” celebrated the Third Annual Cesar Chavez Day March and Rally for Peace.

University of Arizona Women’s Studies professor, Raquel Rubio Goldsmith, opened the day’s festivities which brought together a "historic coalition for peace and justice". Endorsed by 48 community groups and by Congressman Raul Grijalva , the event provided a "spirited challenge not only to war, but to all attacks on people of color and working families everywhere".

Julian Kunnie, Director of Africana Studies at the University of Arizona, declared, “We are going to resist this war. We have mobilized a diverse group of organizations—labor, peace, women’s, civil rights, Chicano groups—to celebrate Cesar Chavez and to send a very strong message against this war! We are not going to take this sitting down!”

Cami Juarez, who grew up in a family of farmworkers, was one of many in the crowd who had met Chavez, whose mother was a Tucson native. Juarez noted that, “A lot of people involved in the peace movement are workers. They understand the needs of the disenfranchised.”

Juarez reported his experience the previous day when he and rally organizer, Communist Party USA member Ray Siqueiros, spoke at an assembly at Cesar Chavez Middle School. “I asked the students if they knew what was going on in Iraq. They did. I asked them if they knew what was going on in North Korea. They did. Then, I asked them why we were going to war with Iraq, but not North Korea. The kids said, ‘It’s the oil! There’s no oil involved in North Korea.’ These are disenfranchised youth. They know about oppression and they know about greed. They know what’s going on.”

Rep. Grijalva, whose 7th Congressional District includes Yuma, Chavez’s birthplace, told the rally, “these are troubling and saddening times.” He called on the crowd to exercise their responsibility and rights as Americans to change the country by voicing their opinions in a non-violent way.[20]

Global Justice Center forum

McCain has already been trying to attach S750 to the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Chuck Kaufman of the Alliance for Global Justice explains, "The best way we can defeat this bill is to bring it out into the light of day. If we expose McCain's underhanded tactics, S750 will likely die just like a vampire in the sun. But if he can sneak it by as an amendment on a larger bill, that's how it will get passed." A companion bill, HR1412, has been introduced in the House by Arizona Rep. Matt Salmon, also a Republican.

S750, a border militarization bill that, if passed, would exclude new surveillance installations and other border patrol activities from environmental protection laws. The bill would apply to federal lands within 100 miles of the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona and parts of California.

Arizona Rep. Raúl Grijalva, ranking member of the House's Subcommittee on Public Lands and Environmental Regulations, has introduced legislation to repeal the Oak Flat swap.

Sen. McCain claims S750 is needed for new security installations and to give the U.S. Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents unimpeded access to federal lands. However, Dan Millis, Director of the Sierra Club's Borderlands Campaign, noted at a recent community forum at the Global Justice Center in Tucson, Arizona, "It's a very effective argument because you think, 'They don't have access to federal lands? Of course they have access to federal lands! They have more access than anyone else to federal, private, all the lands along the border....So he is spreading the notion that Border Patrol is somehow not granted access to these areas....Well, that's completely false."

José Matús, director of the Indigenous Alliance Without Borders, talked about the regular impositions border agents make on people living in indigenous lands crossed by the border: "They always have had the authority to patrol....They come in their trucks, bikes, waking people up at all hours of the night, asking people for their documents....They've always had that power 100 miles north of the border, but now they want to give them everything, waving all our rights."

"I think, based on what the Apache nation has done on this issue...it's going to be much more difficult politically...to do that same kind of sneaky process....And for that we should be very grateful to the Oak Flat advocates and the Apache nation for raising this issue...[to] the embarrassment of McCain and the political travesty of doing something in that way and not allowing it to be fully digested and discussed...."

"It's a two pronged agenda.... Part of the agenda...[is] to end any legislative hope... that we would end up with something semi-rational in terms of comprehensive immigration reform because this bill is about enforcement only-only enforcement....So this bill...suspends any possibility in this cycle of doing anything rational and right. It shifts the debate into...enforcement as opposed to dealing with family unification and all the other aspects of immigration that need to be dealt with.

"The other agenda is about attacking bedrock environmental laws that have been on the books for 50, 40, 45 years.... When we suspend not only 37 laws but all the laws along that 100 mile cut off we're also suspending sacred sites, cultural resources, historic...protections, all part of a Native American legacy in the Southwest that despite colonization has existed and survived....It's both about immigration and the environment and citizen accountability and participation in decision making....Suspending laws sets a dangerous precedent....Mark my word, once these basic fundamental laws that are part of a legal legacy for this county are suspended we have opened a can of worms for that to become a practice."

Immigrant rights activist and founder of Tucson's Coalición de Derechos Humanos (Human Rights Coalition), Isabel Garcia, sees an ominous link between bills like S750 and ecological and climate injustice. According to Garcia, "We have the neoliberal monster and we have the other monster of the military...and we are creating refugees. Then there's the denial on the part of so many people in this country but especially in DC of the impact that we have on climate. We see nothing yet. When the world begins to warm, we will see massive migration. We're already seeing massive migration, but we will see it get huge....Is it any surprise that we have begun to militarize [the border]? Did you see...the military has plans of how we're going to safeguard the United States in case there are mass riots, a mass influx of people? Eventually we created Homeland Security....Do you see how it begins to normalize? We say, 'Well, the military should be involved in borders, why aren't they involved in policing our borders? And what's the difference between the military and Homeland Security, anyway?' And before you know it, we don't know the difference."

Garcia sees this militarization happening in many places and at many levels. She observes, "There was a bill in the [Arizona] legislature...to keep secret the names of police officers who have killed. Border Patrol already does this. They've been hiding the names-who does that? Who does that? The military. The military has no accountability. Nobody has to say who killed whom. And we're moving more and more to this militarized form, and of course the environment is part of it, too. We're all connected, all of this is all totally connected...."[21]

The mission of 21st Century Democrats is to build a "farm team" of progressive populists who will be the future leaders of the Democratic Party.

In each election cycle, we endorse a diverse array of candidates who exemplify our values and show unusual promise to advance our progressive goals. We invest in some of the most competitive races as well as in some of the most challenging – those in which the candidates are outstanding but the traditional Democratic supporters are most reticent. We back candidates in primaries as well as general election races, and we focus the bulk of our resources on electing challengers and protecting vulnerable incumbents.[22]

Progressive Majority Advisory Committee

Voted against cutting funding for ACORN

In September 2009, following the lead of their Senate colleagues, the House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to cut off funds to ACORN. the vote was 345-75. All of the 75 were Democrats, and included Raúl Grijalva. [25]

Anti "PAN"

In 2004, the Arizona Secretary of State accepted petitions, signed by over 190,000 voters, to place a "right-wing initiative" on the November ballot. The proposition "uses racism and immigrant bashing in an attempt to restrict the right to vote and to divide the working class".

Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) "summed up the Act well" at an anti-PAN press conference: “This (PAN) is motivated by hate. Immigrants are not the root cause of why our country went to war, why millions are denied medical coverage, why too many remain unemployed or why we face so many other problems. This initiative is a mean- spirited effort to deny people their civil and human rights.” Grijalva promised an aggressive campaign to defeat PAN if it made it on the November ballot.[30]

Posada letter

In 2005 several far left Congressmembers wrote to President Bush urging him to extradite alleged terrorist Luis Posada Carriles to Venezuela to face justice.

We are writing to urge you to oppose the application for asylum by Luis Posada Carriles, and to support the request for extradition to Venezuela, where he is a fugitive from justice.

Fernando Suarez del Solar stated that had it not been for the help of the two congressmen, the tour would have not seen the light due to obstacles laid by the Pentagon. The contingent traveled from December 27, 2004 through January 8, 2005.

The contingent delivered $100,000 in cash and and $500,000 in humanitarian aid. At the time the diplomatic courtesy letters were issued, Medea Benjamin had stated that the aid was intended for families of the “other side” in Fallujah.[33]

Obama's Latino Advisory Council

In August 2008 the Obama Campaign announced[34]the formation of its National Latino Advisory Council, highlighting the continued growth of support Senator Obama is receiving in the Latino community nationwide.

According to the campaign, the advisory council is made up of key labor, faith, community leaders, and elected officials from across the country and will serve as an advisory council for the campaign on issues important to the Latino community as well as play an active role reaching out and organizing Latinos in their communities and across the country.

PDA was the driving force in the passage of resolutions opposing the war in Iraq by eight state Democratic Party meetings. The organization also was instrumental in the passage of resolutions in 10 states calling for the impeachment of President Bush.

PDA is often referred to by Congressional Progressive Caucus Executive Director Bill Goold as the CPC’s field operation, because PDA has built relationships with members of Congress by delivering grassroots support for their initiatives – from Rep. John Conyers’ investigation of the 2004 Ohio voting fraud to Rep. Jim McGovern’s bill to cut off funding for the war in Iraq, a current priority effort.

While PDA is still only a progressive “pup” compared with big liberal dogs like MoveOn, PDA-backed candidates have taken some big bites out of conventional wisdom and centrist Democratic complacency. In Los Angeles, local PDA leader Marcy Winograd won 37 percent of the primary vote against entrenched pro-war Democrat Rep. Jane Harman with only two months of lead time. In Maryland, the dynamic Donna Edwards appears to have come only a few hundred votes short of toppling the multi-term Rep. Al Wynn in her first bid for public office, and she is seen as well-positioned to prevail in 2008. And in Illinois, with strong PDA support, Christine Cegelis, though outspent 8 to 1, nearly beat the candidate of the inside-the- Beltway Party leadership and Illinois party machine, Tammy Duckworth, to vie for the seat being vacated by Rep. Henry Hyde.

This fall, in the House, PDA is focusing attention and effort on several strong progressives worthy of note and support in hopes of flipping several seats from red to blue. In California, Jerry McNerny is running a strong race against an incumbent Republican. In Michigan, Tony Trupiano, with one of the nation’s strongest grassroots efforts, has his sights on an open seat in a Republican-leaning district. And in New York, anti-nuclear activist John Hall has won the Democratic nomination to challenge a four-term incumbent Republican. In Arizona, while the local PDA primary candidate, Jeff Latas, did not prevail, PDA will now enthusiastically join forces with PDA Board Member Rep. Raul Grijalva and support the nominee, the equally progressive Gabby Gifford, as well as PDA-backed Herb Paine, who won a razor-thin primary victory in a neighboring district.

“I’m concerned. I’m concerned,” Grijalva said. “But none of that’s going to pass without Democrats, so I think for the Progressive Caucus and our 70-odd members, holding the line can be huge leverage in this discussion. I’m optimistic about the role we can play. This is where the outside-inside [strategy] is so critical, because the pressure from the outside, not just on progressive members of Congress but on all members of Congress, is going to be critical to holding the line.”

“I’m a Saul Alinsky guy, you know, that’s where I learned this stuff,” Grijalva told In These Times. “There’s gotta be some victories regardless of how small they are. Sometimes the victory with this group is going to be keeping the worst from happening.”[42]

According to Raul Grijalva's official Congressional bio, accessed September 2011;

As Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC), Raúl has championed affordable health care for every American and has pushed for job creation measures that focus on improving America's infrastructure and economic base. He has announced his support in the 112th Congress for the Fairness in Taxation Act, which would create new tax brackets for millionaires and billionaires who currently enjoy generous loopholes that prevent them from contributing a proportionate amount to our economic recovery. He is a co-sponsor of the Fair Employment Act of 2011 to outlaw discrimination against the unemployed in hiring decisions, and wrote an op-ed in mid-March to explain his reasons.

Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus

Campaign to Make Immigration Reform a Top Issue in 2010

On October 13 2010 , immigration activists from around the country gathered to join in a vigil and rally in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC., where Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez and other elected officials launched a new push for comprehensive immigration reform, building to the opening months of 2010. their banners read “Reform Immigration FOR Families” and “Family Unity Cannot Wait.”

More than 750 people traveled to Washington on buses from up and down the Eastern seaboard and as far away as Texas, Florida, Ohio, Minnesota, and Michigan. They spent Tuesday morning meeting with Congressional offices before being joined by thousands of people from the D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area, who gathered on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol to listen to testimonies from families, veterans, and children who face family disintegration because of immigration laws and deportation.

Religious leaders from a diverse array of faith traditions around the country, some organized through Familias Unidas, added their voices.

At the event Congressman Gutierrez outlined a set of principles for progressive immigration reform that needs to include a rational and humane approach to legalize the undocumented population, to protect workers’ rights, to allocate sufficient visas, to establish a smarter and more humane border enforcement policy, to promote integration of immigrant communities, to include the DREAM Act and AgJOBS bills, to protect rights guaranteed by the Constitution, and to keep families together.

Boycott call

Rep. Raul Grijalva, on the day of the signing of SB 1070, called for a national boycott of Arizona- and in so doing, opened "one of the greatest opportunities to influence Arizona politics, to repeal SB 1070 and strike a blow against racism and change Arizona's legislature".[48]

Calling on Israeli Govt. to lift Gaza Travel Ban

On Dec. 22, 2009, thirty-three U.S. Representatives wrote to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, calling on her to request that the Israeli Government end the ban on student travel from Gaza to the West Bank. Raúl Grijalva was one of the signatories of the letter.[49] The entire letter together with a complete list of signatories can be read by clicking here.

Supported Lifting the Gaza Blockade

On Jan. 27, 2010, U.S. Representatives Keith Ellison and Jim McDermott led 52 other members of Congress in signing a letter addressed to President Barack Obama, calling for him to use diplomatic pressure to resolve the blockade affecting Gaza. Raúl Grijalva was one of the signatories of the letter. [50] The entire letter together with a complete list of signatories can be read by clicking here.

Council for a Livable World

The Council for a Livable World, founded in 1962 by long-time socialist activist and alleged Soviet agent, Leo Szilard, is a non-profit advocacy organization that seeks to "reduce the danger of nuclear weapons and increase national security", primarily through supporting progressive, congressional candidates who support their policies. The Council supported Raul Grijalva (D-AZ) in his 2010 Congressional election campaign.[51]

Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva has been a tireless champion of progressive causes in the House of Representatives and is a Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. He has earned a 100% score from PeacePAC every year he has been in office.

Grijalva has been a leader in the effort to bring American troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan. In the last several years, he has voted for legislation to cut funding for expensive and unnecessary weapons systems and costly and ineffective missile defense programs. He opposed the U.S.-India deal on nuclear cooperation.

Grijalva has been a leading advocate for comprehensive immigration reform. He supports measures to bring millions of undocumented residents into compliance with the law and to ensure that law enforcement agencies can track who is living in this country. In 2010, when Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed Arizona’s controversial immigration law, SB 1070, Grijalva called for civic, political and religious organizations not to hold their conventions in Arizona.

Grijalva is personally popular with voters but he faces tough campaigns in both the primary and general elections. He will need significant financial resources to stay competitive for the long haul. You can help this progressive champion by making a check out to “A Whole Lot of People for Grijalva” and mailing it to Council for a Livable World, or by donating online by clicking the button on this page.[53]

Letter to Uribe urging dialog with FARC

In what has been regarded as a turning point in its policy of peace, President Alvaro Uribe agreed to talk with the guerrillas in a small town to find a solution to a humanitarian agreement to release hundreds of hostages in Colombia.

Since taking office on August 7, 2002, Uribe had emphatically warned not to allow the demilitarization of any point of the national territory, as this "would demoralize the troops who have waged a relentless war against armed groups" .

On July 26 2005, the government informed the rebels that is willing to talk with them "whenever and wherever they want, with security conditions that give them confidence, national or international support as they decide."

In the letter sent to the President the three lawmakers expressed concern that situations like the failed rescue in May 2003 the governor of Antioquia, Guillermo Gaviria and former Defense Minister Gilberto Echeverry, where the hostages lost their lives recurrence.

"While we understand that the temporary withdrawal of the military presence is not the best option, we believe remains superior to an attempted armed rescue that endangers the lives of the hostages," the letter says.

In the letter, however, they say the agreement congresitas must be accompanied by a commitment that FARC guerrillas released not return to conflict and remind the government of France offered to host the guerrillas freed in exchange. Indeed, three weeks an envoy of French President Jacques Chirac ago, he met "somewhere in Colombia," with "Raul Reyes", chief spokesman for the FARC, to advance negotiations to set free Betancourt, who also has gala nationality and whose cause has generated a worldwide crusade of solidarity with people who are hostage in the country. [54]

2006 letter to Condoleezza Rice on Colombia

Alleged Colombian Army killings prompted Fellowship of Reconciliation to work with Representative Sam Farr to forge a response that would impact the 17th Brigade, the unit allegedly responsible for the violence against San José de Apartadó and communities throughout northwestern Colombia.

As a result, Reps. Sam Farr and Jim McGovern, wrote a letter to their colleagues in Congress urging them to join in calling on Secretary Condoleezza Rice to cut funding for the Colombian military.

Letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice

(Deadline for Congressional representatives to sign: February 22)

We applaud the decision, noted in your certification letter of August 2005, that the US "will not consider providing assistance to the 17th Brigade until all significant human rights allegations involving the unit have been credibly addressed." Because the Brigade is a component of the Colombian Armed Forces' command structure and has been implicated in the above referenced human rights violations, we implore you to abide by both the letter of the law and the spirit of the law by withholding human rights certification for Colombia until the following conditions are met:

FARC hostages

In March 2007, seven members of the U.S. Congress sent a letter endorsing three European governments' (France, Spain, Switzerland) proposal for a demilitarized zone, where eventual "humanitarian exchange" negotiations would take place to secure the release of Colombian guerilla FARC hostages. The representatives even offer to be present in the zone at key moments in order to guarantee the talks' success.

As you know, though, the FARC instead insists that negotiations for a "humanitarian exchange" of prisoners take place in a 480 square-kilometer zone in southwestern Colombia from which all military personnel have been removed. The Colombian government has been unwilling to pull security forces out of this zone, particularly if the FARC insists on its own forces carrying weapons.

The result has been stalemate, with both sides far from dialogue and the hostages far from winning release. This has gone on for too long. We agree with you that the status quo is unacceptable.

2009 letter on Colombia

From November 6th through December 7th 2009, a letter calling for change in U.S. policy towards Colombia was circulated through the House of Representatives. This letter called for a decrease in U.S. aid for Colombia's military and an increase in support for human rights and humanitarian efforts. The initiators of this letter were —Representatives James McGovern, Jan Schakowsky, Donald Payne, and Mike Honda.

Dear Secretary of State Clinton,

The FY 2011 budget will contain the twelfth year of a major aid package to Colombia—an aid package originally slated to phase out after six years.

After eleven years, it is time to scale down assistance for Colombia's military and more systematically "Colombianize" such programs, within both the State Department and Defense Department budgets.

Rep. Conyers (MI), chair of the Judiciary Committee, directed the Counsel of the Judiciary Committee to meet with the delegation. Also, Rep. Ellison (MN) and his Congressional staff met directly with the delegation for a significant amount of time. rep. Ellison sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, expressing concern over the situation and is continuing to work on options to support his constituents affected. The delegation also received face-to-face meetings with Rep Gutierrez and Rep Davis from Chicago. Rep. Grijalva’s (AZ) office set up a meeting between the delegation and the Executive Director of the Congressional Progressive Caucus in the Congress of which rep. Grijalva is the chair. In addition, the office of Jan Schakowsky (IL) and Maxine Waters (CA) gave the delegation significant time and attention.

“It was clear that progressive Representatives of the Congress are very concerned about the FBI investigation. Overall, they were very thankful for our visit and for the information and analysis given to them The level of awareness about the raids and grand jury was varied, from little to full awareness, but the delegation certainly changed that. After the two days, our presence and purpose definitely created a stir in the halls of Congress. “The fact that we were able to interact with 16 legislative aides or Congress people themselves, during an extremely busy time of restructuring leadership in the Congress, exemplifies the attention this matter is receiving”, stated Joe Iosbaker.[59]

Center for Progressive Leadership

CPC San Francisco Jobs forum

After weeks of Republican attacks on President Obama in rural Iowa, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Barbara Lee on Tuesday August 17, 2011, took to the pulpit of an African American church in Oakland to hear directly from voters and defend the president and Democrats on the most critical issue of the 2012 presidential race - jobs.

"It is a time in our country when the American people know ... that serious job creation must take place," said Pelosi, speaking to reporters before addressing a supportive crowd of hundreds at the Acts Full Gospel Church in East Oakland, one of California's staunchest Democratic strongholds.

Dozens filed up to mikes to tell their stories of unemployment. The session, organized by the Congressional Progressive Caucus, was at times raucous, with some heckling or angrily chanting that it is time to "tax the rich."

Barbara Lee, who leads the Congressional Black Caucus, charged that Republicans, on the 224th day of their leadership in the House, had failed to produce a jobs bill or to deliver any solid proposals.

But both Pelosi and Lee, accompanied by Rep. Mike Honda of San Jose and Rep. Raul Grijalva of Arizona, also aimed to draw sharp contrasts between Republican and Democratic agendas on jobs.

One participant in Tuesday's forum, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, CEO of Green For All, an Oakland nonprofit that works for green jobs, said clean energy has the potential to alleviate poverty by bringing high-quality jobs to urban communities.
'The green economy'

"What's most exciting about the green economy is that it offers the possibility to have manufacturing again, to actually create things ... in both the private and the public sector," she said. "And the greatest growth sector right now is clean energy."

Ellis-Lamkins drew applause when she said that, too often, the focus of politicians is "about who is in the back of the room yelling the loudest."

"What the folks in Washington, D.C., would have us do is fight each other," she said. "I want to make sure the story of tonight is that people of color need jobs ... solutions and jobs."[61]

IPS awards ceremony

Every year the far left Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Policy Studies gives two awards -- one domestic and one international -- to what are described as "heroes of the progressive movement."

In 2011, the International Award, was presented by Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ) to Bethlehem, The Migrant's Shelter (Mexico)
The award ceremony was presented at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 12. .[62]

Restore the American Dream for the 99 Percent Act

Reps Grijalva and Ellison at the Capitol press conference

"Responding directly to national demand for a massive jobs program", members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, December 13, 2011, introduced the Restore the American Dream for the 99 Percent Act into the House of Representatives.

The bill would create more than 4 million jobs and reduce the deficit by more than $2 trillion over the next 10 years, making it the biggest government effort thus far to marshal the resources needed to address the economic crisis.

While no one expects the bill to pass in the Republican-controlled House, it is viewed by many as outlining what really must be done if the economy is to be restarted in a way that benefits the overwhelming majority of the population.

The bill would create several "corps" that will offer government jobs to the unemployed doing essential work including repairing school buildings, maintaining public parks, building neighborhood energy efficiency and conservation projects, and providing health care and other public services in underserved areas. One of the corps would be specifically devoted to re-hiring teachers and first responders laid off by cash-strapped state and local governments .

There are provisions in the bill that require 75 percent of the goods and services purchased by the federal government to be made in America, provisions designed to help small businesses get federal contracts, and allocation of $50 billion alone for highway, public transportation and electrical grid improvement projects.

The bill provides for tariffs in cases where what the lawmakers called "currency manipulation by China" results in "artificially driving down the cost of Chinese imports."

One clause in the bill protects both the long-term unemployed and wounded veterans from hiring discrimination.

The bill includes provisions that would raise $800 billion through a surcharge on millionaires and billionaires, end tax subsidies for oil companies, and impose a tiny financial transactions tax on Wall Street.

There would be other budget savings through ending the war in Afghanistan and slashing $200 billion from the defense budget by eliminating unneeded weapons systems and cutting in half the military forces currently stationed in Europe.

The bill also strengthens health care reform by creating a public health insurance option that would be available through health care exchanges. That measure alone, the lawmakers say, would drive down spending federal health care spending by $90 billion.

The bill would allow Medicare to bargain with pharmaceutical companies to get bulk discounts, a move blocked by Republicans in the past. Supporters say it would help save more than $150 billion.

To save Social Security benefits and trust fund, the legislation would raise the cap on earnings taxed by Social Security above its current $106,800.

"The Republicans want the people to think about how bad things are and to focus their anger on the president," said Grijalva "They don't want people to count the things the Republicans voted down that would have helped this country."

"This bill," said Ellison, "shows we can put people to work today by building for tomorrow."[63]

Anti-Fracking legislation endorser

On March 14, 2013, Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO) and Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-PA) have introduced the Bringing Reductions to Energy’s Airborne Toxic Health Effect (BREATHE) Act, and the Focused Reduction of Effluence and Stormwater runoff through Hydraulic Environmental Regulation (FRESHER) Act, in order to ensure that the hydraulic fracking industry follows the same rules that other industries do in preserving our natural resources. This legislation is focused on ensuring the safety and the health of the communities where the hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, process is already taking place.

The BREATHE Act would ensure that we close the oil and gas industry’s loophole to the Clean Air Act’s aggregation provision, in addition to adding hydrogen sulfide—a chemical associated with nausea, vomiting, headaches, and irritation of the eyes, nose, and throat—to the Clean Air Act’s federal list of hazardous air pollutants.

CCC award

Since 2005, the Center for Community Change has "recognized some of our nation’s top community leaders for advancing the cause of social justice, with a particular impact on the lives of low-income people and people of color. CCC’s Community Change Champion Awards are presented to individuals and organizations who are our heroes in the social justice movement".[65]

Congressman Raúl Grijalva, United States Representative, Arizona 7th District

LIBERT-E Act

June 18, Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI), Chairman of the House Liberty Caucus, and Rep. John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI), the Ranking Member on the House Judiciary Committee, announced the introduction of bipartisan legislation to address National Security Agency surveillance.

H.R. 2399, the Limiting Internet and Blanket Electronic Review of Telecommunications and Email Act (LIBERT-E Act), restricts the federal government’s ability under the Patriot Act to collect information on Americans who are not connected to an ongoing investigation. The bill also requires that secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) court opinions be made available to Congress and summaries of the opinions be made available to the public.

A coalition of 32 Members of Congress joined Conyers and Amash in introducing the bill. After introduction, Conyers and Amash issued the following statement:

Immigration rally arrest

More than 20,000 people - including thousands of unionists -- who marched down the Washington, D.C., Mall on Oct. 8, 2013, to demand the U.S. House immediately pass comprehensive immigration reform. And 200, including 90 union leaders and union members and eight members of the House of Representatives were arrested when, in an act of civil disobedience, they blocked a street in front of the Capitol.

Fred Ross award campaign

In early 2013, mainly Democratic Socialists of America aligned activists, together with many elected officials across the United States came together to urge President Barack Obama to award posthumously the Presidential Medal of Freedom to the legendary organizer, Fred Ross, Sr.. The Saul Alinsky trained radical was the first to organize people through house meetings, a mentor to both Cesar Chavez and DSAer Dolores Huerta, and a pioneer in Latino voter outreach since 1949 when he helped elect Communist Party USA affiliate Ed Roybal as Los Angeles’s first Latino council member, "Ross’ influence on social change movements remains strong two decades after his death in 1992".

Lifting travel ban on Cuba

Due to your action/emails/phone calls we have 59 signatures from House representatives urging President Obama to support travel to Cuba by granting general licenses for ALL current categories of travel.

By eliminating the laborious license application process, especially for people-to-people groups, that is managed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the majority of the bureaucratic red tape that holds up licensable travel to Cuba would disappear and actually facilitate what the President wanted to see in 2011, liberalized travel regulations.

Congressional Letter for Neutrality, 2014 Salvadoran Elections

On Monday December 16, 2014 Reps. Juan Vargas (D-CA), Mike Honda (D-CA) and Mark Pocan (D-WI) sent a letter to Sec. of State John Kerry – signed by 51 Members of Congress – calling for a public statement of neutrality by the State Department before the first round of El Salvador’s presidential elections on February 2, 2014.

The letter, , highlighted several “important steps” that the current government has taken to “strengthen its democratic system and expand the right to vote to all citizens,” including those living outside of the country, who will be voting by absentee ballot for the first time in February. Since the election of Mauricio Funes, the first President from the Marxist Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) party, the government has increased the number of polling places four-fold to increase accessibility, especially in rural areas.

“We’re glad to see so many Members of Congress expressing respect for the right of the Salvadoran people to determine their own future. That’s an attitude that’s sorely lacking in much of the US’ policy in Central America, especially with regard to economic policy,” said Alexis Stoumbelis, Executive Director for the pro-communist Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), in Washington, DC, which has observed every post-war election in El Salvador, starting in 1994.

JStreet endorsement

. Grijalva is a strong supporter of pro-Israel, pro-peace initiatives on the Hill and held on to his seat despite a surprisingly close election in 2010 and tough races in 2012 and 2014. JStreetPAC is proud to re-eendorse Rep. Grijalva in 2016..[73]

Social Security's 77th year

August 16, 2012, Arizona Festivities - AARA members celebrate Social Security's 77th year with Congressman Raul Grijlalva - a great champion!

AARA Kirkpatrick award

Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans spends another Social Security anniversary with Rep. Raul Grijalva, a true champion for the program and for seniors

Marking the 78th birthday of Social Security, the Arizona Alliance for Retired Americans members, leaders and community activists celebrated on Wednesday, August 14, 2013, at 11:30am at Armory Park Senior Center Tuscon, . Attendees will celebrate the programs’ successes and released a new report detailing the impact of these programs on state residents.

ARA endorsements

Praising CAIR

“I salute the Council for empowering American Muslims for the last two decades to participate locally and nationally in political and social activism.” -Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva (D-Ariz.) (August 2014) . [76]

H.R. 1534, The Smarter Approach to Nuclear Expenditures Act

The 2015 Bill H.R. 1534 would reduce the number of nuclear-armed submarines operated by the Navy, to prohibit the development of a new long-range penetrating bomber aircraft, to prohibit the procurement of new intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Secret Meeting/Progressive Agenda

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio held a closed-door meeting at his mayoral residence on April 2, 2015, to create the Progressive version of the 1994 Republican “Contract with America.” De Blasio called his update the “Progressive Agenda” and its stated purpose was to address “income inequality” in the U.S. A dozen far-left leaders attended the closed-door meeting, including George Soros’ son Jonathan Soros. Jonathan claims to support removing money from politics, yet hypocritically serves on several boards at the Open Society Foundation (OSF). OSF has given more than $550 million to liberal organizations. Other liberal leaders at the April 2 meeting were Katrina vanden Heuvel of The Nation, “disgraced” former Obama advisor and 9/11 Truther Van Jones, Marian Wright Edelman, and liberal economist Joseph Stiglitz. In an April 6 interview on MSNBC’s Morning Joe, de Blasio confirmed that key elements of the Progressive Agenda included: a progressive tax (driven by the Buffett Rule -- which argues that wealthier individuals should have to pay higher taxes), universal free pre-kindergarten, and a $15 minimum wage. De Blasio said the full Agenda would be unveiled at the May 12 event in Washington, D.C. [79]

According to Rolling Stone, other attendees included Sherrod Brown, the populist senator from Ohio, and Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy. The novelist Toni Morrison showed up, delighting de Blasio and McCray. Other attendees included Arizona Congressman Raúl Grijalva, chair of the House Progressive Caucus.][80]

Congressmembers call on Obama to rescind Venezuela sanctions

May 15, 2015, Sixteen Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives signed a letter calling on President Obama to withdraw sanctions on seven Venezuelan government officials, and also to withdraw the language of an executive order justifying the sanctions.

The sanctions to which the letter refers were based on legislation voted by Congress in December and signed by the president on Dec. 18. On Mar. 9, after the arrest of several Venezuelan political figures whom Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro accused of plotting a coup, President Obama issued an executive order declaring an "emergency" on the basis of a supposed "unusual and extraordinary threat" to the United States and its interests by Venezuela, and imposed the sanctions, mostly on mid-level security personnel.

The sanctions prevent them from traveling to the United States and freeze any assets they might have in this country.

2015 Cuba trip

Larson, Udall, Franken, Grijalva

On May 25th 2015. U.S. Senator Tom Udall (Dem., NM), the author of a bill to expand U.S. telecommunications trade with Cuba (S.1389), led a delegation of fellow Democrats on a visit to Cuba: Senator Al Franken (MN) and Congressmen Raul Grijalva (AZ) and John B. Larson (CT), all of whom support ending the U.S. embargo of Cuba. Their visit included a meeting with Cuba’s Foreign Minister, Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, as well as meetings with Cuba’s Ministries of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment and Agriculture as well as self-employed members of small cooperatives and investors from foreign countries.

At a May 27th press conference in Havana at the end of their trip, Senator Udall noted that the U.S. designation of Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism” would end in two days (May 29th) and asserted his belief that “it will be a matter of weeks when we have restored diplomatic relations.”[84]

Cuban Embassy soiree

It was remarkable how many non-Cubans knew the Cuban national anthem well enough to sing along July 2015 as the flag was raised over the newly re-established embassy on 16th Street NW. Then they joined in the delirious shouts of "Viva Cuba!"

"It's an amazing moment," said Phyllis Bennis, a fellow with the progressive think-tank, Institute for Policy Studies. "In the decades-long effort to normalise relations with Cuba, to stop the US attacks and hostility toward Cuba, we have not had so many victories. Suddenly we have a victory. The flag going up - that's huge."

“Hemingway would be proud,” said Scott Gilbert, an attorney who represented jailed American contractor Alan Gross, by way of compliment to the bartenders mixing the concoctions in a room named after the famed American ex-pat writer. “There’s a feeling today of joy, but also of disbelief,” Gilbert said. “So many people here thought this would never happen.”

“I’m excited,” said Danny Glover, who in addition to his “Lethal Weapon” roles has been part of numerous cultural delegations to Cuba. “This is the beginning of another narrative….What’s happened in the last 54 years is an insult to our intelligence as human beings and [American] citizens.”[85]

Amy Goodman interview

In July 2015, Amy Goodman interviewed several commentators on the resumption of US-Cuba diplomatic relations.

REP. RAÚL GRIJALVA: We begin an important diplomatic step today, normalization to follow. Lifting the embargo needs to be done. And discussions about returning land to Cuba that is rightfully theirs—Guantánamo—needs to follow. But today, I think, marks a growing-up day for the United States, where we are going to act like adults in our own hemisphere, quit being punitive with Cuba. And the Cuban people have endured. I visited there two months ago, and their resilience and their strength is unbelievable.

AMY GOODMAN: Guantánamo, will it close?

REP. RAÚL GRIJALVA: I think it’s rightfully—there was a seizure, and it’s been a military base. It’s been a—continues to be a prison. That is rightfully Cuban land, and in the long agenda, it’s got to be returned.
[86]

House Committee on Natural Resources

Democratic members of the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources hosted a public Forum on Environmental Justice in Los Angeles on April 8, 2015, as part of a series of roundtables convened by Ranking Member Raul Grijalva that included "stakeholders traditionally left out of climate and environmental policy discussions". Grijalva moderated the forum and heard from members of Congress, state and local officials, community and business leaders and environmental advocates.

The goal of the Forum on Environmental Justice was to examine how to increase public participation through the National Environmental Policy Act; how to strengthen implementation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which “prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, and national origin in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance,” according to the Department of Justice; and how to increase the effectiveness of Executive Order 12898 (Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations). The Forum also examined innovative efforts by the City of Los Angeles and the State of California to ensure that each community enjoys strong environmental protections.

Condemning Criticism of Islam legislation

On December 17, 2015, Rep. Don Beyer, Jr. introduced legislation condemning "violence, bigotry, and hateful rhetoric towards Muslims in the United States." The legislation is based on unsourced claims that there is a "rise of hateful and anti-Muslim speech, violence, and cultural ignorance," and a "disproportionate targeting" of "Muslim women who wear hijabs, headscarves, or other religious articles of clothing...because of their religious clothing, articles, or observances." The resolution, H.Res.569 - Condemning violence, bigotry, and hateful rhetoric towards Muslims in the United States [93]